I will soon hew that tree there, so that it will split." Then he
took his plaster, rubbed the axe with it, and dealt a mighty blow,
but as the iron had changed into silver, the edge turned; "Hollo,
father, just look what a bad axe you've given me, it has become quite
crooked." The father was shocked and said, "Ah, what hast thou done? now
I shall have to pay for that, and have not the wherewithal, and that is
all the good I have got by thy work." "Don't get angry," said the son,
"I will soon pay for the axe." "Oh, thou blockhead," cried the father,
"wherewith wilt thou pay for it? Thou hast nothing but what I give
thee. These are students' tricks that are sticking in thy head, but
thou hast no idea of wood-cutting." After a while the scholar said,
"Father, I can really work no more, we had better take a holiday." "Eh,
what!" answered he, "Dost thou think I will sit with my hands lying in
my lap like thee? I must go on working, but thou mayst take thyself off
home." "Father, I am here in this wood for the first time, I don't know
my way alone. Do go with me." As his anger had now abated, the father at
last let himself be persuaded and went home with him. Then he said to the
son, "Go and sell thy damaged axe, and see what thou canst get for it,
and I must earn the difference, in order to pay the neighbour." The son
took the axe, and carried it into town to a goldsmith, who tested it,
laid it in the scales, and said, "It is worth four hundred thalers, I
have not so much as that by me." The son said, "Give me what thou hast,
I will lend you the rest." The goldsmith gave him three hundred thalers,
and remained a hundred in his debt. The son thereupon went home and said,
"Father, I have got the money, go and ask the neighbour what he wants
for the axe." "I know that already," answered the old man, "one thaler,
six groschen." "Then give him him two thalers, twelve groschen, that
is double and enough; see, I have money in plenty," and he gave the
father a hundred thalers, and said, "You shall never know want, live as
comfortably as you like." "Good heavens!" said the father, "how hast
thou come by these riches?" The scholar then told how all had come to
pass, and how he, trusting in his luck, had made such a good hit. But
with the money that was left, he went back to the High School and went
on learning more, and as he could heal all wounds with his plaster,
he became the most famous doctor in the whole world.
100 The Devil's Sooty Brother
A disbanded soldier had nothing to live on, and did not know how to get
on. So he went out into the forest and when he had walked for a short
time, he met a little man who was, however, the Devil. The little
man said to him, "What ails you, you seem so very sorrowful?" Then
the soldier said, "I am hungry, but have no money." The Devil said,
"If you will hire yourself to me, and be my serving-man, you shall have
enough for all your life? You shall serve me for seven years, and after
that you shall again be free. But one thing I must tell you, and that is,
you must not wash, comb, or trim yourself, or cut your hair or nails, or
wipe the water from your eyes." The soldier said, "All right, if there
is no help for it," and went off with the little man, who straightway
led him down into hell. Then he told him what he had to do. He was to
poke the fire under the kettles wherein the hell-broth was stewing, keep
the house clean, drive all the sweepings behind the doors, and see that
everything was in order, but if he once peeped into the kettles, it would
go ill with him. The soldier said, "Good, I will take care." And then
the old Devil went out again on his wanderings, and the soldier entered
upon his new duties, made the fire, and swept the dirt well behind the
doors, just as he had been bidden. When the old Devil came back again,
he looked to see if all had been done, appeared satisfied, and went
forth a second time. The soldier now took a good look on every side;
the kettles were standing all round hell with a mighty fire below them,
and inside they were boiling and sputtering. He would have given anything
to look inside them, if the Devil had not so particularly forbidden him:
at last, he could no longer restrain himself, slightly raised the lid
of the first kettle, and peeped in, and there he saw his former corporal
shut in. "Aha, old bird!" said he, "Do I meet you here? You once had me in
your power, now I have you," and he quickly let the lid fall, poked the
fire, and added a fresh log. After that, he went to the second kettle,
raised its lid also a little, and peeped in; his former ensign was in
that. "Aha, old bird, so I find you here! you once had me in your power,
now I have you." He closed the lid again, and fetched yet another log
to make it really hot. Then he wanted to see who might be sitting up
in the third kettle it was actually be but a general. "Aha, old bird,
do I meet you here? Once you had me in your power, now I have you."
And he fetched the bellows and made hell-fire blaze right under him. So
he did his work seven years in hell, did not wash, comb, or trim himself,
or cut his hair or nails, or wash the water out of his eyes, and the
seven years seemed so short to him that he thought he had only been half
a year. Now when the time had fully gone by, the Devil came and said,
"Well Hans, what have you done?" "I poked the fire under the kettles,
and I have swept all the dirt well behind the doors."
"But you have peeped into the kettles as well; it is lucky for you
that you added fresh logs to them, or else your life would have been
forfeited; now that your time is up, will you go home again?" "Yes,"
said the soldier, "I should very much like to see what my father is
doing at home." The Devil said, "In order that you may receive the
wages you have earned, go and fill your knapsack full of the sweepings,
and take it home with you. You must also go unwashed and uncombed, with
long hair on your head and beard, and with uncut nails and dim eyes,
and when you are asked whence you come, you must say, "From hell,"
and when you are asked who you are, you are to say, "The Devil's sooty
brother, and my King as well." The soldier held his peace, and did as
the Devil bade him, but he was not at all satisfied with his wages. Then
as soon as he was up in the forest again, he took his knapsack from
his back, to empty it, but on opening it, the sweepings had become
pure gold. "I should never have expected that," said he, and was well
pleased, and entered the town. The landlord was standing in front of
the inn, and when he saw the soldier approaching, he was terrified,
because Hans looked so horrible, worse than a scare-crow. He called to
him and asked, "Whence comest thou?" "From hell." "Who art thou?" "The
Devil's sooty brother, and my King as well." Then the host would not
let him enter, but when Hans showed him the gold, he came and unlatched
the door himself. Hans then ordered the best room and attendance, ate,
and drank his fill, but neither washed nor combed himself as the Devil
had bidden him, and at last lay down to sleep. But the knapsack full of
gold remained before the eyes of the landlord, and left him no peace, and
during the night he crept in and stole it away. Next morning, however,
when Hans got up and wanted to pay the landlord and travel further,
behold his knapsack was gone! But he soon composed himself and thought,
"Thou hast been unfortunate from no fault of thine own," and straightway
went back again to hell, complained of his misfortune to the old Devil,
and begged for his help. The Devil said, "Seat yourself, I will wash,
comb, and trim you, cut your hair and nails, and wash your eyes for you,"
and when he had done with him, he gave him the knapsack back again full
of sweepings, and said, "Go and tell the landlord that he must return
you your money, or else I will come and fetch him, and he shall poke the
fire in your place." Hans went up and said to the landlord, "Thou hast
stolen my money; if thou dost not return it, thou shalt go down to hell
in my place, and wilt look as horrible as I." Then the landlord gave
him the money, and more besides, only begging him to keep it secret,
and Hans was now a rich man.
He set out on his way home to his father, bought himself a shabby
smock-frock to wear, and strolled about making music, for he had learned
to do that while he was with the Devil in hell. There was however, an
old King in that country, before whom he had to play, and the King was
so delighted with his playing, that he promised him his eldest daughter
in marriage. But when she heard that she was to be married to a common
fellow in a smock-frock, she said, "Rather than do that, I would go
into the deepest water." Then the King gave him the youngest, who was
quite willing to do it to please her father, and thus the Devil's sooty
brother got the King's daughter, and when the aged King died, the whole
kingdom likewise.
101 Bearskin
THERE was once a young fellow who enlisted as a soldier, conducted himself
bravely, and was always the foremost when it rained bullets. So long as
the war lasted, all went well, but when peace was made, he received his
dismissal, and the captain said he might go where he liked. His parents
were dead, and he had no longer a home, so he went to his brothers and
begged them to take him in, and keep him until war broke out again. The
brothers, however, were hard-hearted and said, "What can we do with
thee? thou art of no use to us; go and make a living for thyself." The
soldier had nothing left but his gun; he took that on his shoulder, and
went forth into the world. He came to a wide heath, on which nothing
was to be seen but a circle of trees; under these he sat sorrowfully
down, and began to think over his fate. "I have no money," thought he,
"I have learnt no trade but that of fighting, and now that they have made
peace they don't want me any longer; so I see beforehand that I shall
have to starve." All at once he heard a rustling, and when he looked
round, a strange man stood before him, who wore a green coat and looked
right stately, but had a hideous cloven foot. "I know already what thou
art in need of," said the man; "gold and possessions shall thou have,
as much as thou canst make away with do what thou wilt, but first I
must know if thou art fearless, that I may not bestow my money in vain."
"A soldier and fear - how can those two things go together?" he answered;
"thou canst put me to the proof." "Very well, then," answered the man,
"look behind thee." The soldier turned round, and saw a large bear,
which came growling towards him. "Oho!" cried the soldier, "I will tickle
thy nose for thee, so that thou shalt soon lose thy fancy for growling,"
and he aimed at the bear and shot it through the muzzle; it fell down and
never stirred again. "I see quite well," said the stranger, "that thou art
not wanting in courage, but there is still another condition which thou
wilt have to fulfil." "If it does not endanger my salvation," replied
the soldier, who knew very well who was standing by him. "If it does,
I'll have nothing to do with it." "Thou wilt look to that for thyself,"
answered Greencoat; "thou shalt for the next seven years neither wash
thyself, nor comb thy beard, nor thy hair, nor cut thy nails, nor say
one paternoster. I will give thee a coat and a cloak, which during this
time thou must wear. If thou diest during these seven years, thou art
mine; if thou remainest alive, thou art free, and rich to boot, for all
the rest of thy life." The soldier thought of the great extremity in
which he now found himself, and as he so often had gone to meet death,
he resolved to risk it now also, and agreed to the terms. The Devil took
off his green coat, gave it to the soldier, and said, "If thou hast this
coat on thy back and puttest thy hand into the pocket, thou wilt always
find it full of money." Then he pulled the skin off the bear and said,
"This shall be thy cloak, and thy bed also, for thereon shalt thou sleep,
and in no other bed shalt thou lie, and because of this apparel shalt
thou be called Bearskin." After this the Devil vanished.
The soldier put the coat on, felt at once in the pocket, and found that
the thing was really true. Then he put on the bearskin and went forth
into the world, and enjoyed himself, refraining from nothing that did
him good and his money harm. During the first year his appearance was
passable, but during the second he began to look like a monster. His
hair covered nearly the whole of his face, his beard was like a piece
of coarse felt, his fingers had claws, and his face was so covered
with dirt that if cress had been sown on it, it would have come up.
Whosoever saw him, ran away, but as he everywhere gave the poor money
to pray that he might not die during the seven years, and as he paid
well for everything he still always found shelter. In the fourth year,
he entered an inn where the landlord would not receive him, and would
not even let him have a place in the stable, because he was afraid the
horses would be scared. But as Bearskin thrust his hand into his pocket
and pulled out a handful of ducats, the host let himself be persuaded
and gave him a room in an outhouse. Bearskin was, however, obliged to
promise not to let himself be seen, lest the inn should get a bad name.
As Bearskin was sitting alone in the evening, and wishing from the bottom
of his heart that the seven years were over, he heard a loud lamenting in
a neighboring room. He had a compassionate heart, so he opened the door,
and saw an old man weeping bitterly, and wringing his hands. Bearskin
went nearer, but the man sprang to his feet and tried to escape from
him. At last when the man perceived that Bearskin's voice was human he
let himself be prevailed on, and by kind words bearskin succeeded so
far that the old man revealed the cause of his grief. His property had
dwindled away by degrees, he and his daughters would have to starve,
and he was so poor that he could not pay the innkeeper, and was to be
put in prison. "If that is your only trouble," said Bearskin, "I have
plenty of money." He caused the innkeeper to be brought thither, paid
him and put a purse full of gold into the poor old man's pocket besides.
When the old man saw himself set free from all his troubles he did not
know how to be grateful enough. "Come with me," said he to Bearskin;
"my daughters are all miracles of beauty, choose one of them for thyself
as a wife. When she hears what thou hast done for me, she will not refuse
thee. Thou dost in truth look a little strange, but she will soon put thee
to rights again." This pleased Bearskin well, and he went. When the eldest
saw him she was so terribly alarmed at his face that she screamed and ran
away. The second stood still and looked at him from head to foot, but then
she said, "How can I accept a husband who no longer has a human form? The
shaven bear that once was here and passed itself off for a man pleased me
far better, for at any rate it wore a hussar's dress and white gloves. If
it were nothing but ugliness, I might get used to that." The youngest,
however, said, "Dear father, that must be a good man to have helped you
out of your trouble, so if you have promised him a bride for doing it,
your promise must be kept." It was a pity that Bearskin's face was covered
with dirt and with hair, for if not they might have seen how delighted he
was when he heard these words. He took a ring from his finger, broke it
in two, and gave her one half, the other he kept for himself. He wrote
his name, however, on her half, and hers on his, and begged her to keep
her piece carefully, and then he took his leave and said, "I must still
wander about for three years, and if I do not return then, thou art free,
for I shall be dead. But pray to God to preserve my life."
The poor betrothed bride dressed herself entirely in black, and when she
thought of her future bridegroom, tears came into her eyes. Nothing but
contempt and mockery fell to her lot from her sisters. "Take care," said
the eldest, "if thou givest him thy hand, he will strike his claws into
it." "Beware!" said the second. "Bears like sweet things, and if he takes
a fancy to thee, he will eat thee up." "Thou must always do as he likes,"
began the elder again, "or else he will growl." And the second continued,
"But the wedding will be a merry one, for bears dance well." The bride
was silent, and did not let them vex her. Bearskin, however, travelled
about the world from one place to another, did good where he was able,
and gave generously to the poor that they might pray for him.
At length, as the last day of the seven years dawned, he went once more
out on to the heath, and seated himself beneath the circle of trees. It
was not long before the wind whistled, and the Devil stood before him
and looked angrily at him; then he threw Bearskin his old coat, and
asked for his own green one back. "We have not got so far as that yet,"
answered Bearskin, "thou must first make me clean." Whether the Devil
liked it or not, he was forced to fetch water, and wash Bearskin, comb
his hair, and cut his nails. After this, he looked like a brave soldier,
and was much handsomer than he had ever been before.
When the Devil had gone away, Bearskin was quite lighthearted. He went
into the town, put on a magnificent velvet coat, seated himself in a
carriage drawn by four white horses, and drove to his bride's house. No
one recognized him, the father took him for a distinguished general,
and led him into the room where his daughters were sitting. He was
forced to place himself between the two eldest, they helped him to
wine, gave him the best pieces of meat, and thought that in all the
world they had never seen a handsomer man. The bride, however, sat
opposite to him in her black dress, and never raised her eyes, nor
spoke a word. When at length he asked the father if he would give him
one of his daughters to wife, the two eldest jumped up, ran into their
bedrooms to put on splendid dresses, for each of them fancied she was
the chosen one. The stranger, as soon as he was alone with his bride,
brought out his half of the ring, and threw it in a glass of wine which
he reached across the table to her. She took the wine, but when she had
drunk it, and found the half ring lying at the bottom, her heart began to
beat. She got the other half, which she wore on a ribbon round her neck,
joined them, and saw that the two pieces fitted exactly together. Then
said he, "I am thy betrothed bridegroom, whom thou sawest as Bearskin,
but through God's grace I have again received my human form, and have
once more become clean." He went up to her, embraced her, and gave
her a kiss. In the meantime the two sisters came back in full dress,
and when they saw that the handsome man had fallen to the share of the
youngest, and heard that he was Bearskin, they ran out full of anger and
rage. One of them drowned herself in the well, the other hanged herself
on a tree. In the evening, some one knocked at the door, and when the
bridegroom opened it, it was the Devil in his green coat, who said,
"Seest thou, I have now got two souls in the place of thy one!"
102 The Willow-Wren and the Bear
ONCE in summer-time the bear and the wolf were walking in the forest,
and the bear heard a bird singing so beautifully that he said, "Brother
wolf, what bird is it that sings so well?" "That is the King of birds,"
said the wolf, "before whom we must bow down." It was, however, in
reality the willow-wren (Zaunkönig). "If that's the case," said the
bear, "I should very much like to see his royal palace; come, take me
thither." "That is not done quite as you seem to think," said the wolf;
"you must wait until the Queen comes." Soon afterwards, the Queen arrived
with some food in her beak, and the lord King came too, and they began
to feed their young ones. The bear would have liked to go at once,
but the wolf held him back by the sleeve, and said, "No, you must wait
until the lord and lady Queen have gone away again." So they observed
the hole in which was the nest, and trotted away. The bear, however,
could not rest until he had seen the royal palace, and when a short time
had passed, again went to it. The King and Queen had just flown out,
so he peeped in and saw five or six young ones lying in it. "Is that the
royal palace?" cried the bear; "it is a wretched palace, and you are not
King's children, you are disreputable children!" When the young wrens
heard that, they were frightfully angry, and screamed, "No, that we are
not! Our parents are honest people! Bear, thou wilt have to pay for that!"
The bear and the wolf grew uneasy, and turned back and went into their
holes. The young willow-wrens, however, continued to cry and scream, and
when their parents again brought food they said, "We will not so much as
touch one fly's leg, no, not if we were dying of hunger, until you have
settled whether we are respectable children or not; the bear has been
here and has insulted us!" Then the old King said, "Be easy, he shall
be punished," and he at once flew with the Queen to the bear's cave,
and called in, "Old Growler, why hast thou insulted my children? Thou
shalt suffer for it we will punish thee by a bloody war." Thus war was
announced to the Bear, and all four-footed animals were summoned to
take part in it, oxen, asses, cows, deer, and every other animal the
earth contained. And the willow-wren summoned everything which flew
in the air, not only birds, large and small, but midges, and hornets,
bees and flies had to come.
When the time came for the war to begin, the willow-wren sent out spies
to discover who was the enemy's commander-in-chief. The gnat, who was
the most crafty, flew into the forest where the enemy was assembled,
and hid herself beneath a leaf of the tree where the watchword was to be
given. There stood the bear, and he called the fox before him and said,
"Fox, thou art the most cunning of all animals, thou shalt be general
and lead us." "Good," said the fox, "but what signal shall we agree
upon?" No one knew that, so the fox said, "I have a fine long bushy tail,
which almost looks like a plume of red feathers. When I lift my tail up
quite high, all is going well, and you must charge; but if I let it hang
down, run away as fast as you can." When the gnat had heard that, she
flew away again, and revealed everything, with the greatest minuteness,
to the willow-wren. When day broke, and the battle was to begin, all
the four-footed animals came running up with such a noise that the earth
trembled. The willow-wren also came flying through the air with his army
with such a humming, and whirring, and swarming that every one was uneasy
and afraid, and on both sides they advanced against each other. But the
willow-wren sent down the hornet, with orders to get beneath the fox's
tail, and sting with all his might. When the fox felt the first sting,
he started so that he drew up one leg, with the pain, but he bore it,
and still kept his tail high in the air; at the second sting, he was
forced to put it down for a moment; at the third, he could hold out no
longer, and screamed out and put his tail between his legs. When the
animals saw that, they thought all was lost, and began to fly, each into
his hole and the birds had won the battle.
Then the King and Queen flew home to their children and cried,
"Children, rejoice, eat and drink to your heart's content, we have won
the battle!" But the young wrens said, "We will not eat yet, the bear
must come to the nest, and beg for pardon and say that we are honorable
children, before we will do that." Then the willow-wren flew to the bear's
hole and cried, "Growler, thou art to come to the nest to my children,
and beg their pardon, or else every rib of thy body shall be broken." So
the bear crept thither in the greatest fear, and begged their pardon. And
now at last the young wrens were satisfied, and sat down together and
ate and drank, and made merry till quite late into the night.
103 Sweet Porridge
THERE was a poor but good little girl who lived alone with her mother,
and they no longer had anything to eat. So the child went into the
forest, and there an aged woman met her who was aware of her sorrow,
and presented her with a little pot, which when she said, "Cook, little
pot, cook," would cook good, sweet porridge, and when she said, "Stop,
little pot," it ceased to cook. The girl took the pot home to her mother,
and now they were freed from their poverty and hunger, and ate sweet
porridge as often as they chose. Once on a time when the girl had gone